Good morning. I'm Tony D'Aloisio, the Chairman of Perpetual. It's 10:00 A.M., and I've been advised that a quorum is present, and I declare this 2024 Annual General Meeting open, and I welcome you all to Perpetual's AGM. We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land we're present on today, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, as the custodians of this land, recognizing their connection to land, waters, and community. We pay our respects to Australia's First People and to their Elders, past, present, and emerging. We'd like to extend our respect and welcome any Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people who are joining us today. We also acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the many lands where our attendees are situated today, both here and in Australia.
I would like clearly to welcome our shareholders, proxy holders, and guests, both in person and online. For those of you who are joining online today, we hope you found the online guide from Link Market Services and our welcome and summary useful. I will say a few words shortly concerning how I propose to run this hybrid meeting and the procedure for voting and submitting questions. But just before I do that and do the introductions, just to remind you, if there's an emergency, please listen for instructions from the hotel and follow the directions of the venue staff. I would like to take the opportunity to introduce our board and management and our auditor.
In the room, seated at the main table, I'm joined by Bernard Reilly, our new Chief Executive Officer. Sylvie Dimarco, as you know, is our Company Secretary. Ian Hammond, Non-Executive Director. Greg Cooper, Non-Executive Director. Nancy Fox, Non-Executive Director and Chairman of the People and Remuneration Committee. Christopher Jones, Non-Executive Director. Paul Roos, Non-Executive Director. Mona Aboelnaga Kanaan, Non-Executive Director. And Phil Wagstaff, Non-Executive Director. Including me, that's a board of ten. Fiona, I should add. Sorry, Fiona. Fiona Trafford-Walker, our tenth director, is a Non-Executive Director, is currently visiting in New York, and she's joining us online. I'd also like to particularly thank Christopher, Mona, and Phil for traveling to Australia to be here at our AGM.
I think it's important also to inform you of our senior executives that are here in person and sitting in the front row, and they, too, will be available. I might just ask you to stand. Chris Green, the CFO. Craig Squires, Chief Operating Officer. Richard McCarthy, Chief Executive, Corporate Trust. Mark Smith, Chief Executive, Wealth Management. Our people, Chief People Officer, Paul Chasemore. Sam Moss, our Chief Risk and Sustainability Officer, couldn't make it this morning, but that's been delegated to Kian Ho Lim, Head of Compliance, APAC, and he's here instead, so t hank you. Finally, let me welcome Brendan Twining, who is the company's auditor from KPMG. Brendan is somewhere. Yes, there's Brendan.
He is retiring from this role in accordance with rotation policies, and I'd simply like to take the opportunity to thank Brendan for all his work and professionalism over the past five years. Caoimhe Toouli, who from KPMG, will be the new Global Lead Partner and will take over from the end of the AGM, I think. So we've got a proper changeover. Well done. Brendan is here to answer questions that shareholders may have in relation to the financial statements and the auditor's independence, and we'll deal with those questions under the first item of the agenda. So they're the formalities. Let me move to the business agenda for today.
We have got the following items: the presentation of the financial statements, the adoption of the Remuneration Report, the reappointment of Mona, the reappointment of Paul, the reappointment of Philip, the appointment of Rodney Forrest as Non-Executive Director, the approval of the hurdled equity grant for the new CEO and Managing Director, and the renewal of what we do every three years, Proportional Takeover Provisions. There will be opportunities to ask questions in relation to each item of business. The Notice of Meeting has been circulated, and I'll take it as read. Now, a word on proxies. As described in the Notice of Meeting, proxy appointments were to be lodged forty-eight hours before the meeting, where I, as Chairman of the meeting, have been appointed as the shareholder proxy or become their proxy by default.
I will vote all directed proxies as directed in the proxy appointment, and I will vote any available undirected proxies in favor for resolutions one, two, three, four, six, and seven. But I'll vote against in relation to resolution five, in accordance with the board's recommendation against that resolution. I will explain that more as we get into the voting. If you are participating as a shareholder and hold proxies, then you would have received an email setting out instructions on how to vote those proxies. Now, importantly, formalities around questions at the meeting. Following the introduction of the resolution or the item of business, there will be the opportunity for comments and questions. Each of the resolutions today will be an ordinary resolution, that is, to be passed by a simple majority.
First item of business, of course, doesn't carry a resolution, and I'll also explain that. But on the formalities of voting, there's voting for shareholders in the room. Voting on each resolution will be conducted by way of a poll. Karen Hopkins from KPMG will act as scrutineer, and Reggie Harbron of Link Market Services as the returning officer for the purposes of the poll. You will have received a voting card, a yellow voting card, when you registered today. These will be used to cast your vote in person here at the meeting. Once all votes and proxies are counted, the announcement will be made later today at the ASX of the results.
I should also note that we have a room next door allocated as a flow-on room in case this room is full, which it seems to be. So if you are in that room and have a question, please see our Perpetual representative to make sure that you'll be able to ask your questions. Voting online, the actual poll is now open, and you can cast your vote at any time. You may also change your vote at any point until I declare the poll closed. The poll will, in effect, remain open for five minutes after the end of today's meeting. To vote online, follow the steps in the Link Portal. If you experience difficulties, as indicated, please call that number. On the formalities for asking questions. So that's voting.
Then on the formalities for asking questions, as I said, I'll introduce each resolution or each item of business or resolution. I'll then take questions from shareholders on the floor of the meeting and then using the online platform and then the web phone. If you ask a question, please move here in the room. Please move to one of the fixed microphones located on either side of the room. Please provide your full name to the staff member standing there, so they can introduce you prior to asking your question. We encourage you to use the microphones at the back for any guests that may not be able to make it to a microphone on the side, and please do that. Simply raise your hand, and we'll bring a roving microphone to you.
Questions from shareholders online. For those that are participating online, there's an opportunity to ask written questions during the meeting, and this function is also open, and as you can see, there's a procedure to follow with the Link Portal. Basically, here in the room, the Company Secretary will read the question. They'll be read in full, as submitted, and then we'll endeavor to answer the questions, and I'll do that by responding or by designating someone, one of the other board members or management, to respond. For audio questions online, you can have audio questions. That's this use of the so-called web phone on the Link Portal, and there are steps associated with that, which are explained.
That completes the formalities on, proxies, on voting, on questions. Essentially, it's a meeting where we are encouraging, your participation, whether it be in the room, or online or through the so-called bat phone, sorry, web phone. Okay. That completes, as I said, the formalities. I now want to move to the chairman's address, and that will be followed by introducing Bernard, our CEO, for his address. Now, I have today a number of items to cover, and I will spend some time on these, including our results, which typically the CEO would talk to. But given the CEO transition, I will cover these. And as you can see from that list, I will cover the results, the Scheme of Arrangement with KKR, board changes, and the board's remuneration report.
There has been a lot of noise about this wonderful company, and one of my key objectives today in taking through this presentation is to help shareholders navigate through that noise. I keep, and I will reiterate throughout, that we do have a great company. First, let me just begin by, before moving to these items, as Chairman and on behalf of the board, I want to acknowledge and thank everyone within the Perpetual Group, both here and overseas, for their continued dedication in what has been another significant year for the group. We now have over 1,800 staff across the globe.
Significant year in the sense that our staff and management have needed to continue to grow the businesses, look after existing clients, manage the continued integration of the Pendal Group acquisition, and complete a strategic review that has led to a scheme to put to you as shareholders to vote on concerning the separation of two businesses. As a board, we are proud of their dedication and their efforts. But like our shareholders and the board, our teams recognize the need to improve our results and the need to demonstrate delivery of a better return for shareholders on the capital that's been employed in asset management acquisitions and to complete the work in relation to the scheme. Speaking on behalf of management, staff, and the board, I know that they remain committed and energetic to continue to do that work.
As a board, we feel we've created the culture-